A test lab for instant messaging in space

When you're hurtling through the galaxy at over 17,000mph it's a bit late to discover your communications systems aren't up to scratch. So, since the Apollo days, Nasa has brought its antennas to this anechoic chamber - which absorbs electromagnetic radiation - at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, to put them through their paces. The carbon-impregnated polyurethane walls soak up the radiation, simulating space conditions. Antennas matter because of the vast amounts of data they send back - from voice and video to system feedback.

In June, the chamber was used to test the International Space Station's GPS kit. The room will also be used to test various antennas vying for use in Orion's 2015 mission to the ISS. They will be strapped on to the mock-up space capsule in the photograph, and radiation patterns will be measured by an antenna at the furthest point in the room or a scanning probe on the ceiling.